I remember when......

Page 11

This page is devoted entirely to interesting stories
provided by former members of the 33rd Trans Co. or 118th AHC.
It might be safe to say that the stories are true but in some
cases "the names may have been changed to protect the innocent"!!

Page 11

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Tan
Uyen Leper Colony

Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease caused by
Mycobacterium leprae, an acid-fast, rod-shaped bacillus or bacteria.
The disease mainly affects the skin, the peripheral nerves, mucosa
of the upper respiratory tract and also the eyes, apart from some
other structures. Leprosy has afflicted humanity since time immemorial.
It once affected every continent and it has left behind a terrifying
image in history and human memory - of mutilation, rejection and
exclusion from society.

Leprosy has struck fear into human beings for thousands
of years, and was well recognized in the oldest civilizations
of China, Egypt and India. Since ancient times, leprosy has been
regarded by the community as a contagious, mutilating and incurable
disease. There are still many countries in Asia, Africa and Latin
America with a significant number of leprosy cases. It is estimated
that there are between one and two million people visibly and
irreversibly disabled due to past and present leprosy who require
to be cared for by the community in which they live.

When M.leprae was discovered by G.A. Hansen in 1873,
it was the first bacterium to be identified as causing disease
in man. However, treatment for leprosy only appeared in the late
1940s with the introduction of Dapsone, and its derivatives. Even
today, many believe leprosy is a disease that causes people's
fingers and toes to fall off. Actually, the disease causes skin
lesions, attacks the nervous system and numbs the extremities.
As a result, lepers develop lesions or injure themselves (when
lighting a fire, for example), and their injuries do not heal,
ultimately causing them to lose the extremity. The disease is
not very contagious and can be cured. Early treatment makes it
possible to avoid disability.

With a total population of 78.7 million, Vietnam
currently has about 22,000 lepers, and the Government has made
it a priority to eradicate this disease. Unfortunately, most lepers
live in remote areas, and available resources are far from being
enough to meet all of their needs.

The 118th Thunderbirds participated in flying both
US Army and US Air Force doctors from Bien Hoa to a leper colony
only about 10-12 miles North of Bien Hoa just across the Song
Dong Nai river. Flights usually took place on Saturday and Sunday
with the doctors being dropped of to work for the day and returning
to pick them up well before dark. Since leprosy was so rare to
American doctors, many took advantage of the opportunity to see
and treat the victims of the disease at the colony.

Doctor Joseph Altomonte, MD, the 118th Thunderbird
Flight Surgeon during 1965-66, made weekly visits to the Tan Uyen
Leper Colony treating patients and local civilians. Likewise other
Flight Surgeons, such as Dr. Marvin Marchman, MD, continued the
weekly visits to the Colony. Everyone was always amazed at the
fact that the Catholic run leper colony at Tan Uyen was most often
avoided by the VC and no problems ever seemed to happen when US
personnel went there.

An aerial view of the Tan Uyen Leper Colony
on bright sunshine day immediately

N. across the Song Dong Nai river. (Oct 66)

(Photo courtesy Tommy Thornton)

Dr. Joseph Altomonte, MD sitting with children

at the Tan Uyen Leper Colony.(66)

(Photo courtesy Tommy Thornton)

L to R: Tommy Thornton, Jack Waters and Dr.
Joseph Altomonte with some of the girls at the colony. Note the
bandage on the little girl at left and the one next to her covering
her face.(8 May 66)

(Photo courtesy Tommy Thornton)

Blue 5--Shoot-Down

PROJECT
NEWPORT

The Building and Operation of Newport Terminal

During early 1967, ships were anchored up to 45
days or longer waiting to be assigned berths (Command History,
1967, Vol. II). Demurrage costs ranged from $3,000 to $7,000 per
day. By the end of 1967, ten ports would be handling cargo thus
reducing ship berth time from 20.4 days to 2.4 days (Heiser, 1974).
There was also a shortage of tugboats to handle vessels, barges
and miscellaneous duties, but with the building of Newport, the
Saigon command port crisis would be essentially over by late spring
of 1967. The new port was built on the Saigon River between Saigon
and Bien Hoa along Highway 1.

III Corps
Artillery &

Flight Following Maps

Every pilot remembers the famous map called
"One over the World"!! It was that BIG 1/500,000 map
we all put in a plastic cover and then folded into a package about
15 inches square for easy carrying or stuffing between the seat
and center pedestal of the helicopter. That was not the only map
we received to aid in our flying in III Corps during the 1966-67
time period.

12th Group was famous for putting out occasional
maps showing the various Artillery Control Centers which were
used to check on any U.S. and ARVN artillery being fired in the
A/O. Below is a scan of three maps that were issued in mid 1967
to show rough boundaries and FM frequencies of artillery control
zones, plus flight following routes with ATC frequencies and tactical
sites with their control tower frequencies.

III Corp Artillery Control Centers
with FM frequencies to

call for "up to the minute"
U.S. and ARVN artillery fire!! (67)

(Map courtesy Tom Payne)

Composite map showing artillery contact
frequencies and ATC info

with tower and ADF beacon frequencies
in boxes.(67)

(Map courtesy Tom Payne)

U.S. Army Flight Following System and Pilotage
Chart showing magnetic headings,

distances and beacon frequencies and identifiers,
plus flight following radios and frequencies.(67)

(Map courtesy Tom Payne)

Miss Ha--Now
a U.S. Citizen !!

As has been said previously on this web site, many
of the Vietnamese citizens who worked for the U. S. military during
the Vietnam war escaped by boat or immigrated to the United States,
later. No stories have been told of anyone doing that to Russia??
Miss Ha, Now a U.S. Citizen, is a heart warming story about
one of the wonderful young ladies who worked for the 118th Thunderbirds
known as Miss Ha or more humorously as "Ha, Ha". She
was a very personable and cheery young lady who worked in the
Thunderbird HQ and Supply for approximately 6 years. During the
time she worked for the 118th, she would go along on Civic Action
trips as interpreter, visiting the orphanage of Tam Hiep (run
by Vietnamese Catholic Nuns). After 1968, Miss Ha also worked
for USAF 510th FS .

Miss Ha legally immigrated to the United States
in 1990 with her husband and daughter and settled in San Jose,
CA under "Humanitarian Operation Program." Her husband
was an officer in the S. Vietnamese Army and was interred in Communist
"re-education" camps for a number of years. Recently,
her brother Timothy Pham, also in the U.S.(he was a former ARVN
1st Lt., and left VN on April 29, 1975 "Operation Frequent
Wind")., found the 118th Thunderbird web site with Miss Ha's
photo in it. When he told Miss Ha, she was very happy and stayed
up many nights looking at the site and remembering many of the
names of men who served in the Thunderbirds. She called and visited
with the Webmaster several times and is interested in hearing
from any who served in the 118th while she worked there.

Miss Ha left the 118th around 1968-69 and began
working for the 510th Fighter Squadron, aka "The Buzzards
of Bien Hoa" (F-100 Super Sabre)also at the Bien Hoa airbase.
She apparently worked for the U.S. unit until the Squadron packed
up and went home. She has maintained contact with several of the
other ladies who worked for the Thunderbirds and makes almost
yearly visits back to Bien Hoa and Vietnam to see those who stayed.

Below are some photos provided by Miss Ha (American
name isTeresa Ha Pham) and her brother showing her through the
years with the Thunderbirds and the 510th Fighter Squadron. Also,
there are some photos of her today as she has attended reunions
in San Jose, CA and back in Bien Hoa Vietnam.

If anyone would like to contact Miss Ha today, she
would be very, very pleased to hear from you. For that contact
information contact the Webmaster.

Personal response to some of the emails Miss Ha
has received.

To the former
118th AHC :

It was overwhelmed for me to get lot of thoughtful emails every
day from all of you. I am really grateful to your warm thoughts.
I am unable to respond to each individual email in a short period
of time so I asked the Webmaster to help me posting my response
on the website. Sorry if this caused any inconvenience.

To Lt Gil Gerry: Thank you for the inviting me & my husband
to join your meeting & pot luck dinner in November 15. I
really love to attend but our working schedule is conflict with
the meeting time.

To Robert Larsen: Miss Nguyen Thi Bich worked 93rd Dispensary
(64-65) and miss My Thi Tam worked at Naval Station Library outside
the 118th Bailey compound gate. These two ladies quit their jobs
pretty early so I lost their contact.

To Jack Todd: I am not sure who is Duc and where he worked at.
If Duc was not a military officer for the South Vietnam government,
he was not forced to go concentration camp.

To James Morgan: Two clerks worked at motor pool, one of them
named Luong, pictured taken in section 118th AHC (Orderly Room)
showed on the website. Luong did not work for Orderly Room but
at motor pool. The picture was taken during I took my vacation.
That was why Luong was in the picture and I was not. Luong passed
away in year 2000 due to an illness. Miss Dao (Cherry Blossom)
left motor pool kind of early so I lost her contact as well .

To Gordy: Regarding of Miss Nguyen thi Sau worked in Officers
Club, I did not know any one who worked there. I left the team
in 1969 due to reduction inforce.

To Wayne Wright:
I did not know Mr. Duc at all.
I did not know Miss Kim worked for the club . I only know miss
Kim worked for operations tent with me (63-64) . Kim left Vietnam
in 1976 to France as her husband is a Vietnamese French . Kim
currently lives in Paris . We keep in touch really well via phone.
She went over to the US twice for visiting old friends.
To Tom Payne: Miss Thi (Titi) worked for operations . Her picture
was in section 118th AHC on the website. Titi is still not married
and currently lived in Bien Hoa . She is a successful business
woman. She runs a small business there and take care of her big
family includes her mom and siblings. She still looks young and
cute. I am asking her to come to the States for a visit. It is
a good chance to see members of 118th.

To Sean Hall: I totally have no idea bout MIA status of Lt Walter
Hall (65). Sorry I cannot help you on this one.

To all members: In 1964, I worked for Captain Riggins Ronald
in a short period of time. He was KIA with another 3 members
of 118th. I was given a chance to fly along with all pilots and
crew members. I sat on the aircraft of commander to fly into
Tan Son Nhut for a farewell ceremony of Captain Riggins Ronald.
I still remember vividly I was tearful at the ceremony. And it
was not only me! I found people around me were also tearful.
That scene never get fading in my memory. I am very grateful
to all American soldiers who fell down on my country for our
freedom.

Rainbow
6 .....DOWN !!

Sometime in the year 1968, one particular aircraft
was chosen to be Rainbow 6. This aircraft was flown primarily
by the Thunderbird CO, "Thunderbird 6" and served as
a C & C ship. Just why it was called Rainbow 6 is not fully
known. But, it must have been because this name would include
all three of the 118th Platoon colors and thus would represent
all of them.

On March 1, 2968, while on a flight with the entire
unit, Rainbow 6 had a maintenance problem. According to the official
record, "Engine failed at 2000 feet. An auto rotation was
made to a rough area. The tail bounced and the main rotor cutoff
the tail boom. The number 5 stage compressor failed." The
pilot was 118th CO, MAJ Robert G. Shain and CPT William E. Bannister
was Co-Pilot. The following official U.S. Army black and white
photos show the aircraft and the damage done. According to the
Crew Chief Lanny Hansen, who was on board the aircraft, this is
what he wrote in his diary about that day and Rainbow 6....DOWN!

I got the new
ship 17082 on 16 Feb 68. This next part is what I wrote for 1
Mar 68- --"Today started off good, then went bad. First
off, the ships were going into the first L.Z. They took fire(but)
no ships took hits. One crew chief was killed (SP4 Stanley R.
Lewter)(and) also an ARVN on board. Both got shot in the neck.
Then at 11:15 we were flying at about 2300 ft. when something
exploded some where around the engine. The ship rocked and down
we came. The pilot flared out and we stopped about 30 ft. above
the ground and dropped. The blades swooped down and chopped off
the vertical fin and then everything from the sync(ronized).
elevators back. Both pieces hit within 10 ft. of my side of the
ship and the skids were collapsed. We all got out OK. Like I
said before this is what I wrote in the diary. I do not know
who the co-pilot or gunner were that day other than what the
crash report said. I do know that Maj. Shain was the pilot and
I (was)the crewchief. I do not know what ARVIN unit was being
inserted that day or who the ground troops were that secured
the area of the crash. We stripped the helicopter of guns and
other equipment and were picked up by one of the slicks fairly
quickly and were gone before the ground troops showed up."

MAJ Robert G. Shain and CPT William E. Bannister
(apparently the

commander of one of the platoons) following
the incident.(68)

(Photo courtesy Lanny Hansen)

Memorial
Services

Over the nearly 10 years the 33rd Transportation
Company/118th Thunderbirds were in Vietnam, 81 men were lost.
Some years were more deadly than others and the breakdown is thus:

1962--0;

1963--4;

1964--11;

1965--19;

1966--4;

1967--16;

1968--11;

1969--12;

1970--3;

1971-1

Whenever a loss occurred, it affected everyone
in the unit. Usually, there was a time of remembering and a time
for memorializing their service. There was no TO&E Chaplain
for the 118th company sized unit, but there was a Chaplain within
HQ of the 145th Combat Aviation Battalion which the 118th was
part of.

Below are scans of the memorial service programs
for three men who were lost in 1969. Thank you to James G.
"Jim" Bock who provided the scans of the original programs
he still has in his memorabilia.